Chez Panisse is a Berkeley, California restaurant known for using local, organic foods and credited as the inspiration for the style of cooking known as California cuisine. Well-known restauranteur, author, and food activist Alice Waters co-founded Chez Panisse in 1971. From the beginning, Waters advocated a style of cooking that uses the freshest, most delicious […]
Instant Noodles are a hungry man’s best friend, and actually a large part of my childhood. So while I was passing through Japan, I paid homage to the man who invented it — Momofuku Ando and his Instant Ramen museum located in Osaka (and also Yokohama, which is closer to Tokyo!).
Manga Cafe also known as mangakissa in Japanese is a kind of café in Japan where people read manga (comic books). Patrons pay for their time in the café where they can read in a comfortable setting. Most offer internet access and drinks. For an hour’s stay, the cost is generally about 400 yen (~$4.5). Longer stays are […]
Haru’s Cooking Class One of my most memorable times in Kyoto was Haru’s cooking class. I learned how to make Dashi (soup stock), Aemono & Kinpira (vegetarian dishes), Tamago (omelet), Kobe beef & Miso soup! The recipes were simple, but got me started in Japanese cooking. Taro (the teacher) holds the cooking classes in his […]